Thursday, December 17, 2009

A resident of Somanya in the Eastern Region, Kwame Wayo Acheampong, has found himself in the grips of the law after pouncing on his tenant and chewing part of his scrotum in a fierce fight last Thursday.

Kwame Wayo, 45, went straight for the genitals of 37-year-old Sani Sulley, a tenant in his house, and took a ginormous bite at this important “property”, tearing half of it and leaving his victim in a pool of blood. The wife of Sulley was so mad about the attack she told DAILY GUIDE she was very determined to see to it that Kwame Acheampong was punished for what she described as ‘cannibalistic behaviour’. Both Sulley Sani and Kwame Wayo Acheampong were butchers at Somanya but Wayo was a landlord to Sulley.

DAILY GUIDE sources disclosed that the friends-turned-enemies had lived in the same house for the past two years but in the last three or four months, Acheampong had been insisting that Sulley left the house because he was giving him problems. Sulley was said to have reacted by saying that he would leave the house only if his landlord refunded a balance of GH¢600 as part of the total cost of GH¢900 he incurred in making the house habitable.

When DAILY GUIDE contacted the victim, he readily offered to tell his side of the story. According to him, he rented a chamber and hall apartment in Acheampong's house because both of them were working at the same slaughter house; but at the time of moving into the house, it was not fully complete, so he had to hire some artisans to plaster a greater part of the house including his room, install ceilings and extend electricity to the house which cost him GH¢900.

He indicated that the agreement was that he would pay a rent of GH¢10 a month to offset the cost incurred. Sulley told the paper that all of a sudden, Kwame Wayo decided to eject him from the house after he had stayed there for only two years. “What I told him was that if he is asking me to leave the house, then he should pay my balance of GH¢600 Ghana before I leave but this has become a problem for him”. He explained that because of the condition given him, the landlord decided to use 'rough tactics' to frustrate or force him out of the house.

He told DAILY GUIDE that things came to a head on Thursday December 11 after his wife, Rukaya, had finished preparing ‘fufu’ for the family. According to him, the wife of the landlord, Agnes Wayo, though unprovoked, went to where the food had been prepared and swept dust and sand into it. The victim said they then reported the matter to the police, with the food as exhibit. “After we came home, my landlord told me that that was the beginning of greater punishment for us and that he had instructed the wife that next time she should ease herself into our food and also in front of my room”. According to Sulley, around 8.00pm in the night, he asked his nine-year-old son to remove his school uniform from the drying line in the veranda, but before he could do that, he had to step on a little wall that served as a break to rain water in the house.

He narrated that just as his son stepped on the wall, the landlord came from nowhere and gave him a hefty slap for ‘standing on his wall’. “This action by the landlord infuriated me so much that I immediately confronted him as to why he should slap such a little boy”, adding that before he could say jack, the landlord grabbed his “balls” and took a ‘mighty’ bite.

He disclosed that the landlord had said he was going to kill him. “I felt terrible pains and I had to scream for help. I was wearing P.E. shorts and everything turned bloody. I was rushed to the Atua Government Hospital and sent straight to the theatre for some stitches and immediate attention. “As I speak to you, I feel serious pain in my abdomen and I am very weak”.

Wayo is expected to be put before the Odumase-Krobo Circuit Court Wednesday after he was arrested and charged with the offence of causing harm. He told the police that he slapped the little boy because the boy crossed his path while he bit Sulley's “balls” in defence because Sulley attacked him and held him by the neck.

From the local to the continental, the Fahamu Pan-African Fellowship (FPAF) program has a vision of nurturing African social justice leaders - generating contemporary, energetic, visionary and innovative thought and activism. FPAF is a one-year program that seeks to strengthen community based organisations and social movements across Africa by identifying individual community based activists with qualities of leadership and innovation, and providing them with hands-on work experience, training and development opportunities. The program aims to enhance the skills, knowledge and experience of community-based activists while increasing the effectiveness and professionalism of their affiliated organisations and movements.

Fellowship coordinatorFahamu is seeking a coordinator for its Pan-African Fellowship Program. The coordinator will be based in our Nairobi, Kenya office.

Reporting to the Deputy Director, the fellowship coordinator will be responsible for:• Developing curriculum for the Fellowship program and facilitating participatory workshops, seminars and other learning forums using diverse material and tools• Conducting briefing sessions for prospective fellows and developing fellowship application material• Identifying and coordinating the selection of host organisations, projects, fellows and mentors• Providing and coordinating fellows’ induction, monthly forums and seminars, evaluation and wrap-up workshops and seminars• Coordinating and maintaining consistent communication with fellows, host organisations, mentors and Fahamu• Moderating online discussions and forums for fellows for the continuous exchange of information, ideas, experiences, dialogue and resources• Coordinating the production of the book and video of fellows’ experiences• Providing regular updates and reports to multiple audiences on the fellowship program• Preparing financial and narrative reports at regular intervals• Fundraising, proposal writing and donor liaison for the program• Such other duties as may be required from time to time by mutual agreement You must:• Have at least five years experience working with social movements and community based organisations• Have demonstrable experience developing curriculum and training materials• Have demonstrable project leadership skills• Be highly organised and able to work under pressure and to tight deadlines• Have a demonstrable commitment to social justice and human rights in Africa• Have excellent inter-personal skills• Have excellent writing and communications skills• Be fluent in English. Fluency in Kiswahili is also preferred.• Be able to work with people from diverse backgrounds and experiences• Have budget and financial management experience• Be a self-starter, able to take initiative, and work effectively as part of a team• Be proficient in the use of word processing and spreadsheet software• Experience of using multi-media tools for multiple purposes is a plus• Be based in Nairobi with the ability to travel if and when necessary

This position is for an initial two year contract period.Please send your CV, cover letter and names of three referees to: winnie@fahamu.orgApplications close 17th December 2009. Applications received after this date will not be considered. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.Position start date: 18th January 2010This is a full time position. Competitive salary commensurate with experience.Fahamu is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

About Fahamu:Fahamu is a pan-African organisation that supports the movement for social justice in Africa. We work with social movements that address the needs of the most vulnerable and marginalised in society. Fahamu seeks to nurture these movements to become significant agents for change by enhancing individual, collective and organisational leadership, skills and knowledge, as well as by creating platforms and networks for effective advocacy, enhancing the use of diverse and innovative tactics and strategies for change, and amplifying Africa-centred voices, perspectives and solutions.

Submitted by Kemi Bello

2. Oxfam is taking in applications for OFXAM INTERNATIONAL YOUTH PARTNERSHIP, open to people below the age of 25. Deadline: october 2010. For more details please go to www.oiyp.oxfam.orgSubmitted by Yvonne Laruni.

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